Mayor breaks ties in favor of Charles Town annexation requests

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - The Charles Town City Council approved two annexations Monday night despite concerns about additional traffic problems and whether the city can handle the growth.

City council members first approved annexing 124 acres into the city where the Oakland United Methodist Church is considering building an assisted living center for elderly people, a child-care center, a medical center, single-family homes and other facilities along W.Va. 9 east across from Crosswinds subdivision.

Council member Matt Ward was among several people raising concerns. He said the city has no plan to expand public services to take on more city residents.

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The city has already agreed to take in 5,500 new homes under previous annexations, Ward said.

There was a split vote on the annexation and Mayor Peggy Smith cast the tie-breaking vote in favor of accepting the annexation.

The second annexation request involved annexing about 20 acres into town along Jefferson Avenue where 227 housing units could be built.

A group of Jefferson Avenue residents told council members they were concerned about the number of housing units being planned in the Jefferson Heights development and the dangerous traffic conditions that already exist on Jefferson Avenue.

Local resident Rosella Kern said there were two car accidents on Jefferson Avenue within a 12-hour period, and in one case, a car in a crash went through a neighbor's yard and hit a porch on a house.

Other than a main access off Jefferson Avenue, a representative for the developer said two more ways of entering the development are being studied.

One proposal is to build a new road in the area that would allow Jefferson Avenue residents to have easier access to W.Va. 9 east, said Smith.

There was a split vote on the Jefferson Heights annexation, with Smith breaking the tie vote in favor of the annexation.